Crescendo Real Estate Advisors has acquired initial assets for its second European logistics fund.

The UK-based global real estate investor said the Crescendo Preservation & Income Fund 2 (CPI 2) fund has bought the global headquarters and manufacturing facility of automatic machines manufacturer IMA in Bologna, Italy, and has also acquired an automotive equipment manufacturing facility in Oss, the Netherlands.

Cabot Lodge, Crescendo Real Estate Advisors co-founder, said: “These two deals illustrate that despite Covid-19 or perhaps in part because of it, there are compelling mid-market industrial real estate deals in Europe to be done.”

Daniel Quai, Crescendo Real Estate Advisors co-founder, said the fund has a number of equity deals in its pipeline targeting sub-€50m that “we feel avoids increased competition from larger players but still allows for a diversified portfolio of corporate obligations to be built”.

Thomas Reckers, Crescendo Preservation & Income Fund 2’s portfolio manager, said: “Corporate sale and leaseback financing is relatively new to Europe but long-established in the US.

“It is attractive to property owners that benefit from releasing value from their long-term real estate asset-base and attractive to investors who benefit from a high quality, recurring income stream from the sellers who are now tenants.”

Crescendo said the CPI 2 fund, which seeks to raise €300m this year, is nearing its second close. The fund will invest across 15-20 industrial and logistics assets across Europe.

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